Where is everyone?
Nov 23, 2011 | 12:18 pm
#16
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: CMH
Programs: Delta Gold Medallion, United
Posts: 433
Like last year, I offered to buy my dad and his partner a ticket to spend T-day with us, since there were still plenty of seats available at reasonable fares. Again, he declined. They'll be driving over to watch the Mars rover launch instead. No scans, no groups, no stress.
Nov 23, 2011 | 12:26 pm
#17
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 627
Attention mainstream media: please take this story and run with it. They love doing articles about the Thanksgiving tradition of spending multiple nights in airports going nowhere, and if they could go to a terminal on this super-busy travel day to the sound of crickets chirping, perhaps that would say something about the TSA.
Nov 23, 2011 | 12:29 pm
#18
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Finally back in Boston after escaping from New York
Posts: 13,684
Or people finally got wise and figured out how much of a pain in the tuchus it is to travel the day before Thanksgiving.
Mike
Nov 23, 2011 | 1:16 pm
#19
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 121
Just finished up a 685 mile drive - lots of traffic on interstates that are normally deserted. Weather wasn't great but other than that the drive was good.
Picked up someone at CRW last night - coincidentally the same time that the screeners came off shift. I counted 14 TSA employees in one shift for an airport that might handle 750 passengers a day.
Picked up someone at CRW last night - coincidentally the same time that the screeners came off shift. I counted 14 TSA employees in one shift for an airport that might handle 750 passengers a day.
I was also floored at how little traffic there was at Newark airport.
I hate that I'm now at an age where I could afford and do weekend air trips, but I can't now.
Nov 23, 2011 | 1:27 pm
#20
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 240
Last year, the Weds. before Thanksgiving, I was at large US airport (flying domestic) at a normally peak travel time. No one was on the shuttle bus. There were 5 people in the ENTIRE security screening area. They made EVERYONE, even the 2 elementary school aged boys, go through the scanner. I hope the person in the viewing booth enjoyed their new job...
Last edited by average_passenger; Nov 23, 2011 at 1:46 pm
Nov 23, 2011 | 1:30 pm
#21
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: STL
Posts: 132
Nov 23, 2011 | 2:07 pm
#22
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 516
This weekend we're auto-training to Florida. The roads will be crowded, and the airports full of TSA. So we'll sit back, eat well, watch a movie, lie flat (sleeper car), and arrive rested, not-radiated, not-groped, and with all our stuff -- an entire carload of stuff.
TSA has changed the value equation. Now Amtrak is the better value.
TSA has changed the value equation. Now Amtrak is the better value.
Nov 23, 2011 | 3:19 pm
#24
Join Date: Sep 2002
Programs: AA Plat, Fairmont Platinum, Hyatt Platinum
Posts: 4,534
Boston (Logan) was nearly empty this morning. The local news here showed no lines for security at 6:30AM. Usually security is nuts at that time. They showed the screeners all standing around just swinging their arms waiting for people to show up.
Love it!
Love it!
Nov 23, 2011 | 5:55 pm
#26
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 78
Good. I hope people stop flying. TSA will only be curtailed when airlines whine about revenue loss.
Complaints and letter writing are useless because TSA bureaucrats and related tech industry make too much money and Obama needs his only effective jobs program.
Complaints and letter writing are useless because TSA bureaucrats and related tech industry make too much money and Obama needs his only effective jobs program.
Nov 23, 2011 | 6:27 pm
#27
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: BLI or CLT
Programs: The usual suspects
Posts: 2,090
Today the early morning TV news was that PHX was jammed and travelers needed to arrive at the airport at least 2 hours before departure time. However, the accompanying video showed empty security lines. Tonight's broadcasts had stories about heavy highway traffic, but nothing about Sky Harbor.
As for cost being the only explanation, many of us have either the money or the miles we could use if we chose. I bought my 3 kids airfare to visit grandma for Thanksgiving (they are young and more patient than I, and one is even an "anything for security" nut, how embarrassing for me) but I'm staying home, as I refuse to deal with the airport foolishness.
As for cost being the only explanation, many of us have either the money or the miles we could use if we chose. I bought my 3 kids airfare to visit grandma for Thanksgiving (they are young and more patient than I, and one is even an "anything for security" nut, how embarrassing for me) but I'm staying home, as I refuse to deal with the airport foolishness.
Nov 23, 2011 | 7:04 pm
#28
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: The best state in the USA - Florida!
Programs: Marriott Titanium/LT Plat, AS Titanium, Disney AP
Posts: 14,532
MIA was a ghost town this morning. Was sitting in the SkyClub 10 minutes after getting off my shuttle.
Best part was the MMW machine had to get re-calibrated, so it was WTMD for all of us this morning! No lines, no gropes, no radiation - only thing that would make it better would be get PreCheck up and running and no War on Water.
Best part was the MMW machine had to get re-calibrated, so it was WTMD for all of us this morning! No lines, no gropes, no radiation - only thing that would make it better would be get PreCheck up and running and no War on Water.
Nov 23, 2011 | 8:27 pm
#29
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: BOS,PIT
Programs: Marriott Lifetime Platinum, JetBlue Mosaic-2, AA Platinum
Posts: 562
Nov 23, 2011 | 8:36 pm
#30
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: STL
Posts: 132
Amazing...
I just returned from picking up my husband at the Amtrak station in Newport News, Virginia. I have never seen anything like it. The parking lot was full, the side lots were jammed, and even the road leading to the train was packed with not a spare place to park.
I parked NEXT DOOR at a health clinic and texted the hubby and told him where to find me.
He said the train was 100% full, and there were several people who had to stand in the train cars, due to lack of seating. Today, there were eight LONG passenger cars on his trek from New York to Newport News.
Amtrak is busy, busy, busy.
I parked NEXT DOOR at a health clinic and texted the hubby and told him where to find me.
He said the train was 100% full, and there were several people who had to stand in the train cars, due to lack of seating. Today, there were eight LONG passenger cars on his trek from New York to Newport News.
Amtrak is busy, busy, busy.